


he hated it

by otherothersock



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Friendship, From a prompt, M/M, Slow Burn, kid and old person friendship, not mainly focused on destiel
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-06
Updated: 2018-02-06
Packaged: 2019-03-14 11:06:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13588752
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/otherothersock/pseuds/otherothersock
Summary: I stole this prompt from @ceruleanrabbitking on tumblr. I don't know you but thank you for the idea! Anyway this is about Castiel and Rowena being neighboors and becoming friends. It talks about Castiel falling in love with Dean, but it is not the main focus. I might write that story one day, but for now, enjoy!





	he hated it

At first, the neighbors ignored each other. The old women had seen plenty of kids in her day, and knew they were all the same. Loud, disrespectful, annoying. When the family moved in, she closed the shutters and locked the door. She didn’t need any trouble. The family is big. Four kids and the parents. She already knew they would be the death of her. She retreated behind her curtains.

***

Castiel didn’t want to move. He liked his old town, with his old house, with his old room and old stuff. He liked it. One thing Castiel hated was change. Changing their location, changing schools, changing towns. What was the point.

“You’ll love the town! It’s nice and small, and the high school is a ten minute walk. Don’t pout at me like that. Go unpack.” His mother said to him as soon as they pulled into the driveway. Boxes cluttered their front porch. He hated this.

He choose the room with the ledge. It seemed the easiest to escape from if need be. (He was always prepared.) There was another ledge, but the shutters were closed tightly. He didn’t care. Probably some hermit. Or a child hater.

“Hey Cassie,” Gabriel said, leaning on the doorway of his new room. Castiel hated that nickname. “Ready to start 9th grade?”

“No.” Castiel said back, arranging pictures on the wall. “Ready to start eleventh grade?”

“You know it. Mikey’s already giving me shit for not doing the summer work.”

“Don’t curse in front of the 9th grader!” Michael screamed from the other room.

“See what I mean?” Gabe stage whispered to Castiel. Gabriel left Castiel to finish unpacking. He closed the shutters.

The rest of their short summer break went by quickly, and soon enough, Castiel was walking ten minutes to his new middle school where he knew no one. He hated this.

The school was big, kids everywhere. Castiel was what some kids called unsocial. He hated talking to people if half the time they didn’t know what he was saying. He’d rather be reading or at home or anywhere but here.

Castiel decided the school was okay. He made some friends, he knew kids names. There was Dean who made Cas (that was what he called him) blush for some unknown reason, Garth and Benny, and Charlie and Dorothy. There were other kids too, but Cas didn’t pay them any attention. He decided he liked the town a little bit more. 

It was spring when Cas finally opened his shutters. The frisbee he had been throwing around fell onto his ledge. He walks out onto the ledge, it’s strong and sturdy enough to hold him. He’s not that big.

The person next door has the windows open too. She’s a woman. An old woman. She’s sitting by the window, reading or knitting or doing whatever old people do. He climbs onto the ledge slowly, hoping not to grab her attention. He fails.

Walking on the ledge, he kicks a stick, which hits her ledge, which makes a sound, which causes her to look up.

“Cut that out young man. This isn’t a jungle gym. You’re going to fall.” She says. He hates this stupid house.

“No I’m not. I just want my frisbee.” Castiel says, jumping around a bit, showing off his moves. He slips or trips or does something that causes him to fall a little and he’s sure he’s about to die when something or someone (the latter) grabs his arm just in time.

“What’s your name young man.” The woman asks, pulling him onto his ledge. 

“Castiel. Yours?”

“Rowena.” She says back. “How old are you?”

“14, almost 15. I’m starting tenth grade next year.”

“Ah. Interesting.”

“Thank you, by the way.”

“No problem Castiel.” She retreated back to her work. He went back to his room. They didn’t talk, but they left their shutters open. Castiel moved his comic book collection (given to him by Dean. He said it was embarrassing that he didn’t have any comic books and gave him three) to the open window for her to see. He decided he liked Rowena, that she was one of the better things in the town. He liked the town just a little bit more.

They converse daily.

“Let me tell you about the march in the 70s, for the Equal Rights Amendment.” or “Have I told you about the time I marched against the Vietnam War in the 60s?” Castiel knew each story, but he always said no, and listened to her tell it over and over again.

***

Castiel throws rocks at her window (around her window) to get her attention.

“What can I do for you my dear?” She asks.

“What rhymes with beautiful?” Cas calls back to her.

“Dutiful, pocketful, plentiful, anything that ends in ful.” She says back. “Why do you need to know?”

“It’s for a Valentines day card.” Cas says, turning away and blushing.

“Oh! It’s February already!” She says. “Who’s the lucky lady?”

“Uhm. You remember Dean right?”

“Dean? The one who came over those times?” She asks.

“Uh yeah.” Castiel says, still turning away.

“You two are dating?” 

“Um, no.”

“Oh, well, let me give you some advice…” She started. “Don’t let this boy cloud your thoughts. You are a very bright kid, okay? He is very dreamy, but he is not the sun, you are. That’s what Cristina Yang taught me. Remember that.”

“I will. Thank you.”

“Remind me of your age..” 

“14. I’m in 9th grade, remember.”

“Oh yes.” She said, looking off. “Oh, before I forget, who’s that pop-star everyone likes.. Trey?”

“Troye? Sivan?”

“Yes!! That’s the one!” She said. Castiel gave her a confused and amused look. “It’s for my crossword, hush.”  
***

“What’s wrong with you?” Rowena asked, staring across at Castiel, who stumbled a little and gulped.

“He rejected me.”

“What ever could you mean? Who rejected you?”

“Nobody.” She gave him a look. “Dean.”

“Is that why you’re drunk? Don’t give me that look when I can smell it on you. I’m going to kill that boy!”

“No. Don’t.” Castiel said weakly.

“I cannot believe him. Tell me what happened.”

“I gave him a Valentine’s day card. He said he didn’t want it. Not yet, at least.”

“Well, he doesn’t deserve you.”

“I guess.”

“I have an idea! Why don’t you come over. My son’s here with a smartphone that I can’t use, and you can show me how!” She said. “Don’t don’t look at me like that; it’s better than the self-pity party you were going to attend.”

“I guess.”

It took Castiel exactly 27 minutes to get over to the house next door. According to Rowena. Castiel thought her son looked like he was a king. (of Hell.) He didn’t tell her that. The house was exactly as Cas imagined it. Dark colors, every wood. It gave him a sense of calmness. He liked it. There was this one pillow that was a green color that almost reminded him of Dean’s eyes. He didn’t like that.

“My son is out right now, otherwise I would introduce you two.” She said, pulling out a cigarette. 

“Where’d you get that.” He pointed at the cigarette in her mouth.

“No where.” She looked away. “My son’s bag.”

“Well, if he isn’t here…”

“Atta boy. Now show me how to work this thing.”

2 hours, 12 minutes. That’s how long it took to teach Rowena about modern technology. 

He went home just before the snow came in. It came down for hours. School was canceled. He was glad. Another day of seeing Dean would be torture. He decided to not think of Dean, because it made him sad. The only issue was that everything he saw reminded him of Dean. The green, the gold, the clothes he wore on the first day of 8th grade, the picture Sammy drew him of him and Dean. It was an issue. Castiel didn’t like it.

He looked out the window. He liked that. Rowena had taped something onto her window. It was a picture, of him and her. He drew one and taped it up for her. He took it down. (It wasn’t big enough.) The new one was a picture of snowmen. 

***

It was two months. Dean occupied Cas’s thoughts daily. Dean and Cas weren’t best friends anymore. Dean barely looked at Cas. Can looked at Dean. He stopped caring.

He decided, actually, Gabriel decided, that Castiel needed to take a break. And that he was going to the beach. Castiel wasn’t excited. Gabriel was.

When Cas told Rowena, she was also excited. “I love the beach. I love the seashells and the waves. It’s so beautiful! Oh, you’ll love it!”

He wasn’t excited. He wasn’t going to enjoy it.

“Come on, Cassie, you need to get loose! Maybe laid.”

“Gabriel, he’s 15!” Gabe only winked in response.

***

The beach was okay, Castiel had decided. He had a bucket full of seashells for Rowena, and a keychain with Deans name on it. (He couldn’t resist). It stayed in his pocket. The seashells were spread onto Rowena’s ledge, for her to find. He looks in her window, because she’s usually there at this time of day. And he sees her, on the ground, eyes closed. 

He calls the police.

She survives. They said if he hadn’t called she would have died. He thanks God Gabriel didn’t decide to stop on the way home at that pork restaurant. 

***

Rowena comes back during the summer. Castiel almost doesn’t notice. But there she is, walking into her home, clutching onto the King of Hell’s arm. He runs over to hug her.

“Mother, you would love this home. You can make lots of friends and that boy can visit you.” Her son is saying. “You’ll have plenty of care. It’’s not safe to live by yourself anymore.” She waves him off and turns. Castiel has already left. He doesn’t want Rowena to leave, she’s his only friend (currently) (the Dean situation is messy).

***

Castiel is in tenth grade. He is happy. Rowena is scheduled to leave in 2 weeks, 4 days. He’s not happy about that.

He is very happy, though. Extremely happy. Super happy, 24/7. He’s nervous too, because he wants to tell Rowena, but is afraid of her reaction. He needs to tell her, today. 

“Dean, come her.” Cas beckons for Dean to come to the window.

“Your window? Why?” He walks over. “Woah, look at that sick ledge.”

“I want you to meet someone.” Castiel opens the window and jumps onto the ledge (he’s gotten better), and pulls Dean after him. “Rowena!”

“Yes dear.” Rowena sticks her head out of the window. “Who’s this? Dean Winchester?”

“Yeah, he is.” Cas say nervously. Dean grabs his hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze. 

“What’s he doing here. You know I haven’t forgotten.” She raises her eyebrows and inspects him.

“Yeah, we uh, well.. we, he’s-“

“We’re dating.” Dean cuts in.

“Oh, I see.” Rowena says. “Come in.” Castiel makes a move for the window. “Not you dear, I want to talk to him, alone.”

Castiel mouths ‘sorry’ to Dean and turns back into his room. Dean moves forward.

Castiel sees Dean again in 1 hour, 48 minutes. Castiel stresses the entire time. Dean turns out fine. Rowena says he’s acceptable. Relief falls over Cas’s body. 

***

Castiel is in his senior year. He is happy. He is. He’s deliriously happy. Like can’t-stop-smiling-ever happy. It’s because of Dean.

He visits Rowena every Sunday at the cemetery, her new home. He can’t say he likes it, he’s never been a fan of change. But, each time he comes, he comes with a new seashell and story. He misses her. She probably misses him. Life continues. Castiel is happy.

**Author's Note:**

> follow me @otherothersock on tumblr! if you want the story more focused on dean/cas, lmk. i might write it ;) comments + kudos always appreciated!! thanks so much
> 
> PS this is not edited or anything like that so tell me if you spot any mistakes!!


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